What was a pharaoh and what was his role in the civilization?

Answer 1

Pharaoh is a title used in many modern discussions of the ancient Egyptian rulers of all periods. In antiquity this title began to be used for the ruler who was the religious and political leader of united ancient Egypt, only during the New Kingdom, specifically, during the middle of the eighteenth dynasty. For simplification, however, there is a general acceptance among modern writers to use the term to relate to all periods. Meaning "Great House", it originally referred to the king's palace, but by the reign of Thutmose III (ca. 1479-1425 BCE), in the New Kingdom, it had become a form of address for the person of the king. The Egyptian term for the ruler himself was nsw(t)-bjt(j)(rendered in Babylonian as insibya; Egyptological pronunciation "Nesu(t)-Bit(i)"), "King of Upper and Lower Egypt", literally "he of the sedge and the bee" (properly nj-sw.t-bj.t)), the sedge and the bee being the symbols for Upper and Lower Egypt, respectively. Also nsw.t-t3wj "King of the Two Lands". This double kingship was expressed in the Pschent, the double crown combining Deshret, the red crown of Lower Egypt, and Hedjet, the white crown of Upper Egypt. Initially, the rulers were considered the sons of a cow deity, Bat and eventually Hathor, and they occupied her throne to rule the country and officiate in religious rites. There is evidence that the ruler may have been sacrificed after a certain period of time in the earliest rituals, but soon was replaced by a specially selected bull. Later in the culture, the pharaohs were believed to be the incarnations of the deity Horus in life, and of Osiris in death. Once the cult of Isis and Osiris became prominent, pharaohs were viewed as a bridge between the god Osiris and human beings and after death, the pharaoh was believed to unite with Osiris. The royal line was matrilineal, and a relationship with the royal women through birth or marriage (or both) determined the right to rule. The royal women played important roles in the religious rituals and governance of the country, sometimes participating alongside of the Pharaoh. References

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